In the use of optical fibers to establish communication links from one station to another, great care is required to prevent a break in the fiber as it is fed from its supply spool, to establish the desired communication link, since the diameter of an optical fiber is usually in the range of 10 to 500 microns. While the feeding of the optical fiber can be manually controlled when establishing a communication link from one ground station to another ground station, such control cannot be obtained when establishing a communication link between a ground station and an air or space station. After considerable research and experimentation, the optical fiber dispenser of the present invention has been devised to facilitate the feeding of an optical fiber from its supply to establish a communication link between a ground station and an air or space station, and to prevent the breaking of the fiber during the feeding thereof from the supply spool.
The optical fiber dispenser of the present invention comprises, essentially, a supply of optical fiber and a source of pressurized gas mounted within a housing having an orifice through which the optical fiber is fed and the gas escapes during the feeding of the optical fiber to establish a communication link between a ground station and an air or space station.